Pilot 01X
by PhOeNiX19
Summary: Another enemy is after Lena and the Gundam boys have to help, along with a new pilot who is the Perfect Soldier? And she's a Peacecraft?
1. Kin

Disclaimer: Don't own it, just love it.

**__**

Kin

A.C. 197

One monitor measured the heart rate. Another measured the breathing rate. One on the left measured the brain waves. A monitor in the centre had a scan of an outline of a body. The woman with medium sky blue hair and royal blue eyes, operated the monitors and had a confused look on her face. Behind her was a tall, platinum blonde man who was looking through a 3' thick glass window that looked into a large laboratory room. The man was Milliardo Peacecraft, formerly known as Zechs Merquise. 

In the center of the room was a large cylinder shaped tank filled with warm liquid. In the tank was a young teen girl. She had an oxygen mask over her nose and mouth. On her wrists and ankles were metal braces that had thick wires attached, which connected to the monitors that scanned her system. The girl was only wearing black, tight spandex tank top and short shorts. The tank had air vents on the bottom that pumped air into the tank making the girl's body and hair float. 

"Are her stats regular as usual?" asked Milliardo. Some typing was heard by the woman. 

"Yes," she replied. Milliardo nodded.

"Good," he said. The woman looked up at him. 

"But what about her flaws?" she asked, "For some reason, she doesn't seem to be the advanced version of Pilot 01 that Prof. R intended her to become."

"But can't she control the Zero system better?" Milliardo asked. The woman sighed.

"Yes. That is the only thing that she is able to do that is more advanced than Pilot 01. But her levels in combat, hacking, and general studies are the same as 01. But her speed, reflexes, and flexibility seem to be slightly higher," she stated. 

"Alright. Let's have her in the simulator for the new Zero X system," Milliardo suggested, "I still need to know what her limits are with it." He then walked out of the room. 

The woman sighed. She typed a code into the computer. The air vents were turned off and the tank began to slowly empty the liquid. Another code was typed in to release the braces off the young girl. The woman then typed one last code that made the glass of the tank to lower into the base. Before going into the lab herself, the woman, known as Prof. S, pushed a button on a control panel next to a microphone. 

__

"Ara, time for the Zero X system simulator," Prof. S said into the microphone. She then pushed another button to open a door to the room and walked in. 

********************

The sun shone brightly on the beach. Relena Peacecraft sat under a large umbrella facing the ocean. She wore a powder blue tank top, a long khakis skirt, and a pair of sunglasses with her hair in a simple ponytail. Lena, as she now referred to be called thinking Relena was a childish name, looked up from the book she was reading. Someone had announced her name. _'The voice sounds familiar,' _Lena thought. That someone was Dorothy Catalonia. When Lena saw her, she was shocked. 

"Dorothy! What are you doing here? It's great to see you," Lena said aloud. She was about to give Dorothy a hug, but stopped herself. She remembered Dorothy as a very cold person. Much like a certain Gundam pilot. Dorothy just smiled. 

"Forget the past. Sure," said Dorothy. She gave Lena a hug. She hugged back. Lena was a bit surprised that Dorothy would show this much emotion. After the hug broke, Dorothy asked Lena to take a walk with her. When Lena grabbed her shoes, she followed Dorothy toward the sidewalk and began walking. 

"So Dorothy, how have you been?" Lena asked. 

"Very well thank you," Dorothy replied, "I have gotten my life back on track as well as obtaining a very interesting job." Lena raised a brow. 

"And what job is that?" she asked. Dorothy smirked.

"You'll know when the time comes," she said. Lena had a confused look on her face. She would have asked more questions but let it go. "What about you?" Dorothy asked, "It took me awhile to find you. Why on earth would you not live in your own mansion?" 

"I found the mansion a bit suffocating," Lena answered, "I wanted to live in an apartment on my own." Dorothy nodded.

"Well, since we are headed in the direction of your old mansion, why don't we go visit your brother?" she suggested. 

"Alright," Lena answered. Both of the young women continued walking and updated each other on their lives. Lena noticed that Dorothy was dressed differently. She didn't wear the old school uniform type clothing. Dorothy was wearing a light grey halter top with a jean jacket over it, a chocolate brown mini skirt, and matching ankle boots. Her hair was half up in a bun with the rest free to flow. Lena had never seen Dorothy wear such clothing, but admitted she looked great. Lena commented on Dorothy's sense in clothes. Dorothy did the same. At age 17, they no longer wore school uniforms. When the girls crossed an intersection, they passed by a group of guys around their age. They gave them approving looks, whistled, and catcalled at them. Lena didn't do anything. But Dorothy did. 

"Go find some other chicks you impotent bastards!" she yelled. She continued walking with Lena's eyes open wide. They kept walking ignoring the much louder, illicit comments from the group of guys. After 20 minutes of walking, they reached the estate. It was far from the city, the outskirts. 

"Here we are," Dorothy announced. Both looked up at the 4-story mansion and walked up the stairs. Lena knocked on the door and waited. The door opened and revealed an old man. He had a shocked expression on his face. 

"Hello Pagan," Lena greeted. Pagan gave her a bear hug.

"Miss Lena! It is great to see you!" he yelled, "Master Milliardo! Your sister is here!" By this time, Lena was now on her feet again. Milliardo walked into the front foyer followed by a woman.

"Lena! Glad you came today," he said as he hugged his sister. Before Lena could say anything, she noticed who the woman was. It was Noin. 

"I missed you too Milliardo," she said. He put her down. Lena gave Noin a hug as well. After 2 minutes, the group had settled down and sat in the living room. After some talking and receiving the news of Milliardo and Noin being engaged, Milliardo decided to ask his sister his long waiting question.

"Lena, how do you like living on your own?" he asked.

"It's fine. I've only been living in my own apartment for only 7 months," Lena replied. Milliardo nodded. "Why?" she asked getting suspicious. Milliardo sighed. 

"You may be in danger, again," he said. Lena shrugged her shoulders.

"Who is it this time?" asked she. Everyone looked at each other except Lena. 

"We are not exactly sure. But we do know they have targeted you to get to me and someone else," Milliardo answered. 

"And who is this "someone else"?, Lena said confused. Milliardo hesitated. 

"Well, that will be a complicated thing to answer," he said. 

"Try me," Lena stated. Milliardo nodded his head and motioned her to follow him and everyone else. He led Lena to a locked room that seemed like a storage closet. 

"Ready?" he asked. Lena laughed.

"Ready for anything, even though this feels weird," she replied smiling. Milliardo turned the doorknob 360 degrees twice and a keypad appeared out of a hidden compartment in the wall. He punched in a 5 number code and the door slid open. Lena was not expecting this. As the group walked in, she found out it was an elevator. Dorothy pushed a button and the elevator moved downward. _'I'm guessing this has something to do with Dorothy's interesting job,' _Lena thought to herself. After the elevator came to a stop, the door slid open and revealed an underground looking base. 

"What's this doing here?" Lena asked her brother. 

"This is an underground facility 30 stories from the surface," he answered, "Just before you left, this was built and has been operating since." He then led the group down the hallway and turn right and left quite a few times until they reached another elevator. It was made of bulletproof glass and had gundanium metal lining. They had gone down 2 more floors. After getting out, the only thing in front of them were large gundanium double doors. Noin typed in a code of a keypad that was attached to the wall and the doors slid apart and revealed a large room with chairs. The group walked in and stood in front of a thick, large window, which overlooked an arena, the size of 2 football fields 5 stories below. In the arena was a fiery haired girl dressed in athletic clothing doing gymnastics. 

"What is this?" Lena asked amazed. 

"I'll explain later," Milliardo said, "First, I need you to meet a few people." They turned left and descended down a wide staircase to the arena. Once inside, a woman greeted them. 

"Milliardo, what brings you here?" she asked. All Milliardo did was nod at his sister. The woman looked her over and smiled. Lena politely smiled back. She was observing the unique colour of the woman's hair and eye colour. 

"Does she know?" the woman asked. Milliardo said no. "Then introduce us." 

"Lena? This is Prof. S." The woman called out to the girl with fiery hair, calling her Pilot 01X. The girl ran up to the group. "And this is Pilot 01X." Lena shook hands with both females. She was astounded by the young girl's features. Along with the hair, she had emerald eyes and had the body of a model and was 5' 9" in height. 

"Get straight to the point Milliardo," the girl said, "My name is Ara Peacecraft." 

"I am Lana Peacecraft," said the other woman. Lena gasped. 

"We are your cousins," Ara said. Lena's eyes opened as far as they could go and practically stopped breathing. Ara chuckled a little. "I suggest we go back upstairs and do some explaining," she suggested. 

After 5 minutes, Lena, Milliardo, Noin, Dorothy, Pagan, Lana, and Ara were in the living room. The first thing Lena asked was "How?" Milliardo sighed and explained how everything came to be up until now. 

"They are the children of our father's sister. We aren't the only ones that survived the attack 14 years ago," he said. Milliardo informed the history of their survival and what happened to them during the past 14 years. He then briefly told his sister of how Pagan had kept in touch with the cousins and the building of the underground facility. Milliardo explained how he and a professor invented a new system and Gundam as well as rebuilding the gundams of the 5 pilots. After much talking, Lena had only one important question to ask. She looked over at Ara. 

"Where were you during both wars in the 2 previous years?" she asked, "Were you in it at all?" Ara looked out the window to her left. She then hesitated. 

"Yes, I was," she answered, "But I was only doing small missions to make the Gundam pilots' missions easier and less of a hassle. I did them in secret because I was told to." She looked back to Lena. Lena looked at her hands. 

"I need some rest," she said, "I need to process all of this. Pagan, please drive me home." Milliardo held up his hand. 

"No, you have to move back in here for your own good," he commanded. Lena just looked at him. But she was too tired and confused to argue. She headed up the large, carpeted staircase to where her old room was. Lena locked the door behind her and walked into the bathroom to wash her face. She then headed over to her queen size bed and collapsed on it and fell asleep. 

The next morning, Lena woke up noticing there was someone sitting on the end of her bed. Lena slowly sat up, yawned, and stretched. She looked at whoever was sitting. It was Dorothy. Dorothy looked at Lena and smiled.

"Good morning Lena," she greeted, "I hope you slept well after yesterday." Lena just sighed. Dorothy raised a brow. "Whatever is the matter?" she asked.

"I have no clear memory of my, cousins," Lena replied, "I guess I was too young." Dorothy lightly giggled.

"The memories will come all in due time," Dorothy assured, "In the meantime, get to know them." Lena smiled and nodded. "Get ready for breakfast Lena. We have quite a day ahead of us," told Dorothy. She stood up and left the room. Lena crawled out of bed and walked towards the bathroom to wash up and shower. After 25 minutes, she headed downstairs as she followed the smells of eggs, bacon, and pancakes.

"I hope she's OK today," Milliardo said aloud. Noin rubbed his shoulders. 

"Don't worry Zechs, she'll be fine after more explanations," Noin assured. She was the only person that was allowed to call him Zechs still. Dorothy walked in at sat down diagonally from Milliardo. She greeted them good morning and read the newspaper beside her. Ara ran into the kitchen through the back door and washed her hands in the sink. She breathed in the scent of breakfast.

"Pagan, Lana, the food smells good and I'll bet it's as good as it smells," Ara commented. Lana just smiled and elbowed her in the back as she walked to the table and set down a platter of fruit. Ara sat on Milliardo's right.

"Hey Millie," she chirped. Milliardo just grunted. He was always annoyed when she called him that. 

Plates and utensils were set on the table as Lena walked in. everyone greeted her and she sat in front of her brother. Everyone dug into the food. Lena watched Ara as she piled her plate with everything in sight. _'How much can this girl eat?' _she asked herself. She ate with everyone else until Noin volunteered to do the dishes and everyone left the kitchen. 

"Ara, let's go to the activity room," Lana suggested, "Dorothy, would you like to practice with Ara?" Dorothy looked at Ara and both smirked. 

"Of course," Dorothy replied. She and Ara headed upstairs to change into more comfortable clothes. 

In the activity room, Ara and Dorothy were standing on a large black mat with fencing swords. They didn't wear the traditional fencing outfits. Lana stood away from the mat as Milliardo and Lena sat on a nearby bench. Ara and Dorothy stood 25 feet apart.

"Ready," Lana began. The 2 girls took their stance. "Begin!" Lana said aloud. The girls began circling the mat, their eyes focused on each other. 

"Milliardo," Lena said getting her brother's attention, "Why is she called Pilot 01X?" 

"Because she was the intended Perfect Soldier to have trained under the advanced Zero system," he replied. Lena was still. The words 'Perfect Soldier' brought memories of a Perfect Soldier she once knew. Lena shrugged the thought off and asked another question. 

"What advanced Zero system?" she asked, "Why didn't the original Gundam pilots have it in their Gundams? Why wasn't she in part of the wars along with the others? Don't you think she would have been a great help?" Milliardo laughed at his sister.

"So many questions," Milliardo chuckled, "I'm surprised you haven't asked why she IS Pilot 01X." He watched the girls fight. It was very intense. Lena noticed this for the first time. She was amazed at how the girls were going at it. The duel wasn't only sword contact. Dorothy was jumping around and Ara was doing gymnastic flips and other manoeuvres. Both used other parts of their bodies in the duel as well. Lena was surprised to see that Ara wasn't showing any signs of exhaustion at all. 

Reverting back to reality, Milliardo answered his sister's many questions. He explained that Ara was a GEI (genetically engineered individual) child after almost dying at birth and mentioned that right after the attack on the Cinq Kingdom, she was trained to be the Perfect Soldier. Milliardo also mentioned that Lana was also a GEI, but was taught to be a professor. 

"The other Gundam pilots didn't have the Zero X system because Prof. R had invented the system and kept it a secret," Milliardo said, "Ara wasn't greatly part of the war because Prof. R was quite protective. Lana and Ara are like daughters to her." Lena listened with a sad expression on her face. "Ara had also gone mad from the middle of the war," he continued, "I don't really know the details. But to answer your last question, yes. She would have been a great help." Milliardo then stood up and continued watching the duel. Lena pondered on everything she was told. She too continued to watch the duel. 

Dorothy was beginning to show signs of exhaustion and frustration. Ara on the other hand looked fairly calm. Dorothy was obviously running out of energy and had to stop sometime. The girls had been duelling for a long time and were still fighting. Noin even joined the group. 

Finally, Dorothy was too tired to react quickly and was gently knocked down by Ara. She just laid on the mat until Ara extended her arm to help her up. 

"Great match Dorothy," she complimented, "You are the only one who gives a good fight." Dorothy laughed and congratulated Ara. Both walked over to the observers. After Lana dismissed them, the girls headed to their rooms to shower and refresh themselves. They returned downstairs. Dorothy was wearing black short shorts, a teal Baby-T, her favourite jean jacket which she wore yesterday, and white runners. Ara wore a dark denim mini skirt with slits on both sides, a white tank top with straps that tied at the top, and black, stiletto sandals that had straps tied up under her knee. 

"Lena. We'll stop by your apartment to pack your things," said Dorothy, "You should change as well. We are going to go shopping." Before Lena could protest, Dorothy pushed her out the door with Ara and Pagan following behind. Pagan was the driver of the black limo with the 3 girls sitting in the back. Ara turned on some music, and Dorothy cranked it up. Pagan stopped the vehicle in front of Lena's apartment. The girls entered the apartment and began packing. As Ara, Dorothy, and Pagan carried suitcases and boxes, Lena notified the landlord of her leave. They were on their way back to the mansion when Dorothy asked Pagan to drop them off at the mall. When he did, Ara told him they would call to get a ride back. As the girls entered the mall, a large wave of cool air from the AC of the mall greeted them. 

"Why are we here?" Lena asked. 

"We are here to shop for evening dresses," Dorothy replied, "Your brother is throwing a 3 nights in a row party." 

"WHAT!?" exclaimed Lena, "My brother doesn't do things like that." Ara laughed.

"He does now," she stated, "It's for the engagement. It was all Noin's idea." Lena lightly smiled at her cousin. She still wasn't used to the fact she had blood relatives who survived along with her from the incident years ago. Ara understood Lena's distant behaviour. The girls went to every women's store in search of dresses. After 4 hours of window shopping, they finally found what was suitable for 3 engagement parties. Ara phoned Pagan on her cell phone and asked him to pick them up. When they returned home, the girls went straight to their rooms and changed for the first party. It was 15 minutes before the guests would arrive. 

Everyone inspected each other. Milliardo was wearing a simple white collared shirt, navy blue pants, and matching tie. Noin wore a purple no-sleeve and a long black skirt. Lana wore a dark blue pants suit. Ara was wearing a simple thin strapped, black dress which ended at her knees with slits on both sides, and black strapped heels. Dorothy wore a similar dress to Ara's, except it was dark green and had no slits. She also wore colour matching heels. Lena was wearing a light blue, strapless dress that ended just under her knees. Her shoes were the same colour and were slip-ons, which meant the shoes had only one wide band at the front. All of the girls had the hair down naturally. 

After much fussing, the doors were opened to the guests arriving. 

"Remember everyone," Milliardo began, "For 3 nights, we are to have fun." 

Corny ending, I know. R&R! No flames. 


	2. Acceptance

**__**

Acceptance

First Party Night

Milliardo and Noin were standing by the entrance of the ballroom greeting and talking to guests who were undoubtedly on the wedding guest list. Lena, Dorothy, and Ara were standing by the punch bowl and talking among themselves. Everything was fine as Milliardo tapped his glass with a spoon. This caught everyone's attention. 

"Good evening friends," he announced, "Welcome to the first party my fiancée and I are holding." Many people clapped. "We will now have a taste of champagne, and enjoy yourselves." Noin stood beside him with a champagne bottle and 2 glasses. Milliardo popped the cork and everyone cheered and clapped. Pagan, along with many other waiters, walked in carrying trays of champagne filled glasses. Pagan offered some to the Lena and the girls. 

Lena still seemed distant from Ara. She wanted to know more. Many times had Ara tried to make conversation with her cousin, but failed. Ara was patient, but was becoming restless. Lena didn't mean to be rude. She just didn't know how to converse after everything that happened since yesterday. After another attempt to talk to Lena, Ara excused herself and walked out of the ballroom. Lena watched her ascend the stairs to the third floor. Dorothy was talking to another person the whole time and asked where Ara was. 

"She went upstairs," Lena replied. Dorothy raised a brow.

"Why?" she asked. Lena shrugged. Dorothy sighed heavily.

"Lena, please. Just give her a chance," Dorothy began, "She means well. Even though you don't have memories of her, she does. You were best of friends as well as cousins." Lena gazed at her glass. "And further more," Dorothy continued, "She went through a horrible experience during the war. That's why she wasn't in the battles along with the other Gundam pilots." Lena looked up at and met Dorothy's grey eyes. 

"I guess I should go up and talk to her huh?" she said with a smile. 

"Of course," Dorothy replied. Lena excused herself and walked to the third floor. Dorothy had told her Ara's room was adjoining hers. Lena lightly knocked on Ara's bedroom door and opened it. No one was in the room. Lena looked towards the balcony doors and noticed they were opened. She walked out to the balcony and saw Ara leaning in the railing looking at the gardens. Lena walked up beside Ara. 

"I'm sorry I seem to be rude," Lena apologized, "I'm just a bit overwhelmed right now." Ara smiled. 

"I completely understand. Don't worry about it," she said. They faced each other and began to talk. Lena asked about what Ara had done the last 14 years and why she wasn't in the wars. 

"I wasn't part of the wars because I had gone, mad," she replied. Lena asked what she was saying. "Since Prof. R told me of my birth history, she wanted to see if I could become more than the Perfect Soldier. Prof. R had been experimenting on her work for years while I was growing up. She wanted to know the extent of a GEI." Ara paused. 

"Are you saying that you've been put through intense training?" Lena asked. Ara nodded. "What kind of training?" 

"My schedule was a hectic one," she replied, "I would wake up at 9 in the morning, have breakfast, then have specialized tutoring for 2 hours. Afterwards, I'll have lunch, battle skills and mobile combat training for 8 hours straight, eat a meal what would be called a late dinner, then rest. I would then be placed in a rejuvenation tank, the Advanced Regenerating Mechanism, or what we would call ARM. I would stay in ARM for about an hour or 2. Then I get to shower, get ready for bed and sleep 7 hours." Lena could not believe what she had heard. 

"All that just to become a Perfect Being?" she asked. Ara just smiled. She explained how she was the only one to be tested and it was a dangerous experiment. Lena was relieved to hear that Ara didn't undergo that schedule of training anymore. "I still don't understand what you meant by saying that you had gone mad," Lena said. Ara began to laugh. At the exact same moment, Dorothy walked up to them.

"I hope I'm not missing anything," she said. 

"Not really," Ara replied, "I was just about to explain about my phase of insanity that withdrew myself out of the war." Dorothy smiled. 

"Why don't we go inside and talk," she suggested. The girls headed into Ara's room. They sat in front of the fireplace with blankets and pillows. Lena sat in the middle with Ara on the right and Dorothy on the left. 

"It all started out when Prof. R and my sister were experimenting with samples of the Zero system that was created by Treize Krushrenada. They thought they could increase the program's effect on the pilot," Ara began, "Even professors make mistakes. There was a glitch that messed up the whole experiment that went unnoticed. By this time, I had perfected the regular Zero system." Ara paused and closed her eyes as she continued. "I was summoned by my sister one afternoon and was told that I will be the first person to have a shot at the new Zero system. Instead of testing it in my Gundam, I would test it in a simulator. Prof. R said it was for safety precautions." Ara lightly laughed. "It was a substantial choice since we weren't 100% sure if it was safe. When I was set and ready to go, the system was activated. 

"At first, it felt the same as the regular Zero system. But after a few minutes, I had begun to lose control of my body and mind. The system had caused my sanity level to rush overboard. My sister shut the system down. But she was too late. For some reason, I felt full of anger, anxiety, and need to kill. I burst out of the simulator and began walking toward my Gundam. Prof. R saw the expression on my face and new there was something wrong. She ordered the mechanics to get me to go back to the lab. When they approached me, I took them out one by one. I then began to run and settled in the cockpit of my Gundam. I started to take off, ignoring Prof. R's protests to stop. When I left the base, I attacked an OZ group of trucks that were transporting ammunition. But after blowing up everything, my need to kill and exterminate only heightened. I used the computer system to search and locate the nearest area of my next 'victims'." Ara looked at her hands. 

"Did you kill civilians?" Lena asked. Ara sighed.

"Thank God I didn't," she said, "The search I made informed me that there was a small shipment of explosives and a small number of OZ mobile suits that were going to head my way. I hid until they arrived. There were so many OZ soldiers that were accompanying the shipment. When I attacked them, I had this feeling that I had to annihilate every single thing. I even exited my Gundam to make sure that every soldier was dead at my feet. It turned out to be a massacre." 

"The system had somehow triggered that when you kill, you'll want to kill more and more every time," Dorothy added. 

"What happened afterwards?" asked Lena.

"I began to move towards a small city," Ara whispered, "I set a few buildings on fire and watched people frantically attempt to escape and die." A few tears began to trickle down her face. "And I actually enjoyed it. I was about to burn a few more, but I was attacked from behind. My sister was in her Gundam. She had come after me. She was using the regular Zero system to stop me. We fought for a while until Prof. R appeared on my screen…" 

__

~Flashback~

_"Ara! Stop what you are doing!" Vesta said in a stern voice. Ara laughed a menacing laugh._

"Stop? Why? This is so much fun," Ara remarked, "Besides, it was your idea to have me be your guinea pig." 

"Damnit Ara! What the hell has gotten into you? Now stop this murderous act before I-" 

"Before you what?" Ara mocked, "If I didn't know any better, I would say that you are ordering me around in a motherly tone. You always tried to be a mother to me. Well guess what? You are not my mother! You never were and you never will be!" At that outburst, Vesta's expression softened to hurt. Her head began hang. Ara laughed. The screen went blank until Lana's image replaced where Vesta's was. Lana looked very pissed and had a look that could scare the crap out of millions.

"Look here sister. I don't know what or who you think you are, but you have no right in saying that to Vesta that way," Lana said through clenched teeth, "She has taken care of us since our parents were murdered. She is the only mother we grew up to know." All of this information started to bring Ara back to sanity. "Not only did she raise us, but she saved us from death at birth!" With that final statement, Lana began to brutally thrash at Ara's Gundam. She was trying to defend herself but was too shocked at what she was told. She never knew the whole story behind her birth. All she knew was that there were difficulties. Lana made one final blow at the suit. Ara then blacked out.

~End Flashback~

"When I woke up, I was in ARM. I had been unconscious for over a month." Ara's tears had subsided. "By that time, the war was over. I took me a lot longer to recover from all the effects of the system." 

"Prof. R, or Vesta, and Lana forgave her for her actions and what she had said," Dorothy stated, "They didn't blame her. It was the system that provoked her."

"But what about the Eve war last year?" Lena asked. 

"Milliardo did discover us and learned what we were up to," Ara replied, "He offered to work on producing an advanced Zero system. They succeeded. But of course, it still needed to be tested. It did take a toll on me, but it wasn't as serious as before. It took a while for me to get used to the approved system and master it." Lena nodded now understanding the whole story. 

Noin knocked on the door and entered the room. She asked them what they were doing not being at the party. The girls excused themselves and told her they were talking about Ara's past. 

"The next 2 nights, you girls better stay for the whole length of the party," Noin said sternly and smiled. The girls began to talk about what most girls their age would be talking about. They talked about fashion and other girly things. When they were tired, they all slept in Ara's room as if they were having a sleepover.


	3. Lena's Training

**__**

Lena's Training

The next night was another party. This party was more casual. It was being held by the pool and backyard. Milliardo and Noin had invited the same guests, along with the guests' children. When the party started, Lena and the girls had to avoid stares and flirting gestures from the guys around their age. The last party the next night was formal. Everyone was dressed in elegant styled dresses and tuxedos. The girls couldn't wait for all of it to be over. 

A week after the engagement parties, Milliardo and the rest persuaded Lena to begin training. It was for her to learn how to defend herself and fight against an enemy when mandatory. Lena was reluctant at first, but complied. For the next year, her training wasn't as harsh as Ara's was. Lena was a fast learner and everyone found out she was more capable of what she was expected. Lana decided to raise Lena's training level to see what her limits were. 

Over the next year, Lena was almost as great as Ara. She wasn't the same, just good enough to give Ara a challenge when sparing. Lena also learned how to pilot a Gundam. She had become quite a pilot and had her own Gundam created. Lena's Gundam was dark blue, dark purple, and black. She had requested certain weapons such as a smaller version of the beam cannon, which was an automatic, a blue katana shaped beam sword, and a sheild that attaches to the left arm. Dorothy's Gundam was dark purple, white, and black. Her weapons were a purple beam sword, a double automatic, and a whip similar to Epyon's. Ara's Gundam was a little more elaborate then the others. The Gundam was red, orange, yellow, and white. Ara's weapons were a double, automatic beam cannon, a red katana beam sword, and a staff Ara named Altira, totally made of gundanium. The Altira was a long staff. At the top were four spikes placed like a star horizontally and another spike continuing from the staff and star. But Ara's Gundam had a special feature she requested. It has not yet been finished. 

At first, the threat against Lena and peace were not occurring. But after a year of Lena's training, the threats started and the year was A.C 198. The threats became a bit overwhelming and Milliardo sought help. It took a while, but he did successfully contact all five of the former Gundam pilots. He informed them briefly on the matter of threats against Lena. Milliardo didn't exactly trust their abilities at this time since it has been 2 years since the war. Lena and Dorothy suggested that Ara be hidden to be a surprise trial for the Gundam pilots. Milliardo agreed after much thought. Ara would have to stay in the guesthouse that was 100 feet away from the mansion. 

It was the summer of A.C 198. Duo was driving in his black Porsche on a secluded freeway toward the Peacecraft mansion on a Friday afternoon. In the passenger seat was none other than Heero. As Duo pulled up to the gate, the gates opened and he drove up the driveway. As he stopped the car, he and Heero stepped out and walked up to the front doors. The doors opened to reveal Noin. She greeted them and led them to the living room. There, they found the other Gundam pilots already present. Quatre was sitting on the couch, Trowa was sitting in an armchair, and Wu-Fei was leaning against the wall adjacent to the window. 

"Everyone is here!" Duo exclaimed. He shook hands with Quatre and Trowa. He then shook Wu-Fei's. Heero did the same. His personality had improved for a special person in mind. "I guess all of you got the same message from Zechs," Duo guessed. The others nodded.

"It's Milliardo to you," came a voice. All heads turned to Milliardo as he entered the room with Noin, Lena, and Dorothy. Heero and Lena locked eyes for only a second. She smiled at him and looked away as she and Dorothy sat down on a couch opposite of the one Quatre was sitting. _'What the hell?' _Heero thought. He was confused. Lena didn't say anything to him. Not even a "hi" and look at him longer than the glance. But he was glad to have received a smile. Her smile. In truth, he had always had feelings toward her. At first, he never admitted it until recently. 

"We are very grateful that you were able to come," said Noin, "We all thought that all of you would have declined our urgent request." There was a silence. 

"We are aware that you need our help," Quatre implied, "But we didn't receive a whole lot of information on the threats and a new group that is out to destroy the peace." 

Milliardo, Noin, Lena, and Dorothy looked at each other. 

"This new group is named Zoryx. They have made a few attempts of interrupting peace and have threatened to kill my sister," Milliardo explained. The pilots all looked at Lena. "Just recently, we have begun to receive letters," he continued, "From what we can tell so far, the letters are written in riddles. We've been decoding them one by one." 

"What kind of information were you able to decode?" asked Heero. 

"Attacks, bombings, and assassinations. We've prevented most of them," Dorothy replied. 

"It seems as if Zoryx is only causing trouble so far," Lena added. 

"And what do you need us for?" Wu-Fei asked. 

"We decoded a letter which foreshadowed an upcoming war," Dorothy answered, "And who to call but the Gundam pilots." 

"Former," Trowa put in, "And we don't have our Gundams even if a war broke out." Milliardo smiled.

"We've taken care of that," he said. The guys all looked at him. "Follow me." He walked out of the living room to where the hidden elevator is. He punched in a code on the keypad and everyone piled into the elevator. It stopped and the group began to walk to the next elevator and took it to the arena. The group was standing in the arena. Lana came out to greet them. 

"This is Prof. S," he introduced. Lana shook hands with all the guys. "She will be working with all of you once you are settled in." 

"What do you mean?" asked Quatre. 

"We need to see if you guys are still capable of being Gundam pilots," said Noin, "This is so that we can see if we can depend on you." Wu-Fei snorted. 

"We have to prove it to you?" he scoffed, "I don't have to." Everyone ignored him. 

"What do we have to do?" Trowa questioned. Lana held out her clipboard and scanned through it. 

"I will have to analyze all of you and study your stats, and then see how you fight one on one," Lana explained. She then led everyone to a room at the end of a short hallway from the arena. There were computers and keyboards. Behind was a window, which overlooked another room with ARM in the middle and other sorts of equipment in the room. She told the Gundam pilots to change into the shorts she provided. They all sat in the room and waited to be called to be tested. Duo was first. He was placed in ARM with metal braces on his arms and legs, and an oxygen mask. The tank was filled with a warm liquid. Lana looked over the calculated stats of heartbeat, brainwaves, etc. After Duo were Wu-Fei, Quatre, Trowa, and Heero. Heero's examination took longer. When they were all done, they changed back into their clothing and returned to the arena. They fought against each other at least once. Dorothy and Lena became bored and began to spar on their own. When the boys finished, the girls didn't notice and kept going. Everyone was now watching the 2 young women fight. They were amazed at how Lena was fighting so well. Lena felt being watched and looked at the audience. Big mistake. Dorothy grabbed her arm and flipped her, throwing her a good 50' away. Lena landed and slid on her back. She looked up and saw Dorothy run over along with the others. Dorothy began to apologise. Lena assured she was fine and that she shouldn't have been distracted. The whole group returned upstairs to have dinner. After the meal, the boys were shown to their rooms. Heero's room was across from Lena's, Trowa's next to Ara's room, Duo's on Heero's left and Wu-Fei's on the right, with Quatre on Dorothy's right. 

The guys were all busy unpacking their things around 11:30pm. Heero was about to boot up his laptop to download a program given by Lana when he heard footsteps in the hall. At first, he didn't pay any attention to it. But he heard a whisper belonging to a voice he knew too well. It was Lena's. He didn't want to be nosy, but he had to see what she was up to. It also gave him the excuse to see her. He was a bit disappointed that Lena wasn't paying him a whole lot of attention since he arrived. Maybe she didn't like or love him like he thought she once did. He turned off his lights and opened his door ajar and peered out to the hallway. He saw two figures silently make their way down the hall to the stairs in house robes. They made their way to a window and stood there talking. To Heero, this was weird. Then, Lena's cell phone rang loudly. She couldn't find her phone in her purse in the dark. After a fifth ring, she answered it. Milliardo, Noin, and Lana didn't hear it because their rooms were in the opposite wing of the mansion. By this time, the other guys, except for Wu-Fei, were doing the exact same thing as Heero was. They heard Lena's conversation as she whispered loudly into the receiver.

"Where are you?" she asked, "Now? OK. We're coming." She then hung up. Lena nodded to Dorothy. Both rid themselves of their robes. The boys were shocked at what they were wearing. Lena was wearing dark jeans with a silver vine designs on the sides, silver strapped heels, and a white waist jacket over a light blue tank. Dorothy wore black jeans, black ankle boots, and a dark denim jacket over a purple halter. The girls stored their robes in a closet and opened the window. Lena climbed down first, followed by Dorothy. When they were away from the window, Heero left his room and walked over to the window. He made sure he was hidden in the shadows as he watched the girls climb down the mansion wall by the wooden ivy supporters. Once on the ground, Lena and Dorothy straightened out their clothing and began walking toward the gate. Heero saw a red viper pull up. Lena proceeded to the passenger seat and Dorothy in the back. The car then drove off. Heero was about to follow them when three bodies approached him. 

"Where do you think they are going?" asked Quatre. Heero didn't answer. 

"I'm more interested in who the driver is," said Heero, "If there are threats towards Lena, why would she sneak out when she is full aware that she is in danger?" 

"Should we bring this up with Zechs?" Trowa answered. Heero slowly shook his head.

"Only if this happens more than once," he replied. The boys left back to their rooms. Heero stayed up. At around 2 am, he heard the girls' footsteps in the hall, doors open and close, then silence. Heero left his room and stood in front of Lena's door. He heard a few shuffling noises and faint sounds of the shower. He left to go to sleep.

The next morning, Lena and Dorothy slept in. When Lena finally woke up, she changed her clothes and exited her room. Heero was also walking out of his room and the two bumped into the other.

"Sorry about that Heero. Good morning," she greeted smiling. She then headed for the stairs to the kitchen. Heero was left puzzled. She didn't give him much of a look and walked off. He did notice that she felt firm when she bumped into him. She didn't fall or stumble back. 'Weird,' he thought. He followed Lena's direction. In the kitchen, everyone was sitting at the large table and eating to their hearts' content. He joined them while sitting across from Lena. 

"Did everyone sleep well?" Duo asked with a goofy grin on his face, "Lena and Dorothy sure slept in late." Lena and Dorothy glanced at each other. The guys, except for Wu-Fei, watched the girls' reactions. Lena avoided eye contact and continued eating. Dorothy picked up the newspaper and pretended to read. "Know what Z-, Milliardo, I heard sounds at night," he began, "Maybe it was the floor creaking. You ought to get that checked out." Milliardo raised his brow at Duo.

"Our floors don't creak," he said flatly. Duo shrugged his shoulders.

"Maybe we have a sleepwalker among us." Duo stared at Lena as she and Dorothy both looked over the newspaper. 

"The sleepwalker is you finding your way to the kitchen for food," Wu-Fei remarked. After breakfast, the boys were instructed to change into athletic clothing and meet in front of the elevator. After Milliardo and the guys all arrived at the arena, Lana instructed them to fight when she called out random names. The boys had a great workout as the day went on. For the next 2 weeks, the boys went through the same routine almost everyday. Heero kept a mental record that almost every night, Lena and Dorothy snuck out with the same person driving the red viper. He never saw what the person looked like, but assumed it was a very good friend to the girls. Heero also noticed that the bedroom between Lena and Trowa's was always locked. 

On night, Heero waited until everyone was supposedly asleep to check out the locked room. After the girls left once again, he headed for the room. By now, even Wu-Fei was curious about the girls' nights out and the room. Heero bent on one knee and picked the lock with a pick. He smirked when the lock clicked open and turned the doorknob. He entered the room and was soon followed by his friends. Trowa turned on the lights and the room, to their surprise, was not completely empty. There were a few of someone's belongings scattered around and a laptop on the desk. It was on. Heero headed straight for the laptop and searched the files. There were no relevant files, but there was a short instant messaging conversation left in an open window. The names of the speakers were _L. Peach _and _01X_. The conversation read:

__

01X: So, how much longer until they figure it out?

L. Peach: Don't know. We've been making ourselves as noticeable as possible. 

01X: Good. They would be idiots if they don't notice that you guys are always sneaking out. 

L. Peach: Just make sure they can't see you when you pick us up. We'll leave that to this Saturday. 

10X: Sis told me that I should study their stats. But that means that I'll have to get into the mansion. 

L. Peach: That is what this Saturday is all about. Dumbass. J/J.

01X: Ouch, harsh words. Anyways, let's see if I can get in sooner. I forgot a few things in my room. 

L. Peach: Like what? 

01X: One of my brushes, a jacket, and a disk. That is most important.

L. Peach: OK. Pick them up when you can. 

01X: I will. Gotta go. Bye.

L. Peach: Bye. 

Heero finished reading the conversation. The other guys also read it and wondered where the disk was. Heero began rummaging through the desk drawers. He found a pile of disks and checked them out. He finished searching the last one and found nothing.

"Search the room. It has to be around here somewhere," Heero implied. The guys searched the room and made sure not to disturb anything. After a few minutes of not finding anything, they gave up. 

"Maybe it's not in this room," Trowa suggested. Duo leaned against the wall next to the bed on his elbow. When his weight was pushed into the wall, a secret compartment slid out from above the bed frame. Quatre sat on the bed and took the contents out. In his hand were piles of old photos. Duo sat next to him and Trowa stood over them from behind. 

"Fascinating," Quatre whispered.

"What is it?" asked Wu-Fei. Quatre walked over to the desk and moved the laptop aside. He then placed the pictures on the desk in the order they were found. 

"These pictures are probably from before the attack on the Peacecraft Kingdom 15 years ago," Quatre stated. The boys crowded around the pictures and studied them. There were quite a few of the Peacecraft family. Instantly, Heero pointed out the younger Milliardo and Lena. 

"Who are they?" Trowa pointed to a picture with four people in it. The setting was an apple tree in an open park area. There were four young children. Two of the children were of course Milliardo and Lena. But the other two they didn't know. The blue haired girl was leaning against the tree, Milliardo was attempting to climb it, Lena was on the ground just sitting, and the red haired girl was holding onto a branch with one hand and the other was reaching for an apple. She was easily 10' off the ground. 

"That kid looks the same age as Lena. It's not possible for her to be that strong,' stated Duo. 

"The blue haired girl looks familiar," Wu-Fei mentioned. The guys all took a closer look at the two girls. They concluded that the blue haired girl was Prof. S. 

"But who is the Super kid?" asked Duo. 

"Maybe the little sister," Quatre implied. 

"Hmph," went Trowa.

"Hmph?" Duo looked at Trowa with a confused expression.

"Since we think that the girl is Prof. S, and the other girl is the sister, do you think she is still alive?" he asked, "I have a feeling that Prof. S is more than just a friend to Milliardo and Lena." 

"Why do you say that?" asked Duo.

"Look at how they are dressed," Trowa answered. Upon closer inspection, they noticed the children were all dressed in fancy garments. They also found an inscription on the bottom of the photo. It read: _Lana, Milliardo, Relena, and Ara at apple tree. _

"We have names," said Wu-Fei. 

"They couldn't be Zechs and Lena's siblings could they?" Quatre guessed. 

"We better go," said Heero, "I have to see if I can find anything on Prof. S" He then collected the pictures and left the room with the others. 

When Heero returned to his room, he sat in front of his laptop and began to search for files on Lana. So far, he couldn't find much. He was about to give up when he had an idea. He input _Lana Peacecraft _as a keyword and searched for information. He wanted to see if Quatre's guess was right. Finally, a file came up. Her name was Lana Peacecraft. But she wasn't a sibling of Zechs, she was a cousin. Heero found that she had a younger sister, the red haired girl. He looked up _Ara Peacecraft, _but found nothing. Heero stopped and went to bed since as he was going to continue tomorrow.

The week passed and it was Friday. Heero still couldn't find anymore information on the new Peacecrafts. He figured that he would have to get the information he wanted in the underground base computer lab. He found luck when Milliardo and Noin, along with Prof. S told the group that they would be going out of town for a conference meeting on the threats. They left that afternoon. Pagan was given the weekend off. The girls and boys were alone in the mansion for the whole weekend. That evening, Lena and Dorothy were cooking since there was no one else to do it. Heero told Duo that if the girls went out tonight, he was going to follow them. Duo passed it on. 

After dinner, everyone went about their own business. Heero decided to try and talk to Lena. He knocked on her bedroom door and she answered it. 

"Heero? Is something wrong?" she asked. He just stared at her.

"Is something wrong with you?" he asked. Lena's expression turned puzzled. 

"What are you talking about?" 

"Why aren't you talking to me?" Heero interrogated, "It seems as if you are ignoring me." 

"Don't be silly Heero," Lena assured, "I've been busy lately with the letters from Zoryx and helping out my brother with his wedding plans." Heero was about to say something when Lena cut him off. "Since when did you care if I talked to you or not?" she asked in a mocked tone. He stood speechless. Lena smiled. "Good night Heero." She then locked her door. Heero stood staring at her door. He then heard a snort. He turned to see Dorothy look at him and then disappear in her own room. Heero ignored the act and headed to the living room. There he found Trowa and Duo with a beer in each hand. 

"Where's Wu-Fei and Quatre?" he asked.

"Wu-Fei is outside meditating and Quatre is probably in his room," Duo answered, "Are we really going to follow the girls tonight?" 

"I am," Heero answered, "Follow if you want." 

"I'll drive," Trowa offered. 

At 11 pm, the boys retired to their rooms and dressed for the night. They learned to dress as if they were going to a party the way they all saw the girls' attire. Wu-Fei decided not to go. Heero asked him to continue searching information on what he started. Nearing 11:30 pm, the boys were ready. They guys all waited in their rooms with the lights off. A few minutes passed 11:30 pm, the girls took their leave. The boys headed out the back and piled into Trowa's dark blue Porsche. They followed the red viper with their headlights off. After 20 minutes of driving, the guys waited at a street corner as they watched the viper park in a parking lot beside a tall building. 

"This sucks," Ara retorted. They girls were fully aware that they were being followed by the boys. "I don't think we can get in the club."

"We could," Lena said, "But you might have to make it seem like you aren't."

"I've got an idea," Dorothy put in, "Lena, you and I are going to go in first. Ara will leave, park somewhere else, then come in after us. But not technically join us." Ara raised her brow. 

"I'll watch to see what happens when they go in after you," she said. They agreed. Lena and Dorothy got out of the car and walked towards the building. Ara drove off to park the car somewhere else.

Trowa parked the car and all of the boys walked toward the building. The girls were able to get in with passes. The guys lined up and had to wait. 

"How are we going to get in at this rate?" Duo whined. Music could be heard from the inside. But the line up moved quickly and the entered the building. They walked in looking at their surroundings. Except for Duo, the boys ignored the stares from most of the female population of the room. They walked to the bar and sat ordering drinks. Heero spotted Lena and Dorothy dancing on the dance floor. He had to admit, they were dancing really well and a lot of people were watching them. Quatre and Trowa joined Heero in watching the girls while Duo talked to three girls who were sitting next to him. 

Ara made her way into the club. She had parked her car 5 blocks away. In the club, Ara snuck behind the bar and walked into the storage room. She found a closet which contained uniforms of the bartenders. She grabbed a uniform and changed quickly. She then walked out and began to bartend and kept her eye on the girls and guys. When Lena and Dorothy finally stopped dancing, they headed to a table. Ara made two margaritas, placed them on a tray, and walked to Dorothy's table. She served them, dropped a piece of paper in front of Lena, and winked at the both of them. When Ara returned to the bar, Lena read the paper about where the car was parked. Heero couldn't stand just sitting around, so he walked over to the girls' table. Lena was surprised to see him. Dorothy looked at the bar and saw the others there as well, minus Wu-Fei. 

"Heero, what are you doing here?" asked Lena. 

"I was about to ask you the same thing," Heero replied. Lena nodded. The girls then excused themselves to the bathroom. Once in there, Dorothy dialled Ara's number. Ara's phone began to vibrate. She stepped into the storage room and answered it. 

"We want to get out of here. The plan will have to happen now," Lena told her. 

"Alright. But you might have to run for it," said Ara, "I'll tell you when to get your asses out of the bathroom and run outside. Meet me at the car." They hung up and Ara returned to the bar. She saw that Heero was sitting at the table and the guys were still sitting at the bar. 

"How about I buy you a drink?" asked a suave voice. Ara was pouring a glass of beer. She turned her head and looked and who the voice belonged to. There was Duo grinning at her holding $10. Ara smiled and accepted the offer. Heero walked back to the bar and ordered a shot of tequila. When Ara was about to serve him, she told Lena to go through her phone. Lena and Dorothy emerged out of the bathroom and started to leave. Lena wasn't watching where she was going and bumped into someone. She looked up and a blonde haired guy looked at her and gave her a grin.

"Hey, how about a dance?" he asked. 

"No thanks," Lena declined. She began to walk away when the guy held her wrist. 

"Come on. Just one dance," he pleaded. Lena shook her head. Since the guy was drunk, he got impatient. "Let's dance," he said forcefully. Trowa was looking at them and nudged Heero. Dorothy saw this and told the guy to back off. Lena saw Heero walking towards them. She had no choice but to punch the guy in the face. A girl screamed seeing the guy fall onto the floor. Lena and Dorothy ran out. Duo saw his friends leaving. He was about to pay for his drink when he noticed that Ara had disappeared. He ran after his friends. 

Ara slipped back into her clothing and exited the building and caught up with Lena and Dorothy outside on the sidewalk. 

"Are you OK?" she asked Lena. Lena waved it off. The girls started to walk to where the car was. Dorothy looked back and saw Heero come out through the door. Dorothy began to run with Lena and Ara following behind. Heero caught sight of them and followed in pursuit. Duo saw Ara and wondered how she was out of the building that fast. Ara commanded to split up. They went their separate ways and hid. Lena hid in an alley, Ara in another, and Dorothy behind a dumpster. The guys were frantically looking for them. Since Lena and Ara were in the same alley, they began to climb a short wall and ran over a store roof to the car. They reached it first. Dorothy wasn't as lucky. The guys were near her hiding spot. When she thought they passed by, she walked away and climbed a ladder. She reached the top of a store and made her way to the location of the viper. Trowa looked up and spotted her. With his big mouth, Duo yelled out Dorothy's whereabouts causing her to run. The guys ran after her. Trowa climbed a building and ran after Dorothy while the others followed on the ground. 

She could feel them gaining on her. Dorothy glanced back and saw that Trowa would be tailing her in a few seconds. She also noticed that the other guys were not far behind either. Dorothy pushed on harder and rounded a sharp corner. Trowa past the narrow opening a few steps as Dorothy disappeared in it. He backtracked and continued to chase her. Duo and the rest saw her make her way back to the ground and run in a large alley. They all followed. Dorothy ran a little ways and came to a dead end. She looked at the high brick wall and began to panic. On both sides were alley openings, but Heero blocked the right as Quatre and Duo blocked the left. Trowa blocked the way she came. She turned with her back against the wall. She was about to quit when her cell phone rang. She looked at it and it read a message. Dorothy smiled and stood bold in front of the boys. 

"Not this time guys," she said. Duo raised his brow. 

"What do you mean?" Quatre asked. Suddenly, they heard a motorcycle engine approaching. Duo and Quatre turned around and saw a bike heading towards them at a very fast speed. Duo and Quatre jumped out of the way as the motorist past them and did a sharp U-like turn and stopped in front of Dorothy. She got an and before Heero ran up to them, the bike sped off the direction it entered, with Dorothy waving. 

"Damnit," Heero muttered. 

Lena leaned on the passenger door of Ara's red viper with her arms crossed. She heard a motorcycle come her way and turned to look when it stopped beside her. 

"Have fun?" Lena smirked. Ara pulled off the helmet. Her hair fell loosely. Dorothy got off and leaned on the car beside Lena.

"They almost caught me," she stated as she tried to catch her breathe from all the running. Ara stepped off the bike and left it where it was. She had used Dorothy's phone as a tracking device to figure out where she was. When found, Ara jacked a bike instead of using her own car. The girls all piled in the viper and headed home. When they reached there, Ara dropped the girls off and headed back to the house she was staying at. 

Lena and Dorothy walked up the front steps slowly since they were exhausted. Lena stopped to look for her keys. But the boys had made sure to hurry back to the mansion. They drove up the driveway and abruptly stopped and the guys got out at once. Lena unlocked the door and she and Dorothy ran inside without closing the door. They ran to the elevator and entered. Heero chased them and reached the elevator as it was about to close. Lena met his eye and blew him a kiss. 


	4. The Surprise Test

**__**

The Test: Surprise!

Lena and Dorothy began to laugh as the elevator made its way down.

"The look on his face was a keeper," Lena stated as she laughed. Dorothy laughed along with her as the elevator reached the floor they were headed. They exited and sent the elevator back up to allow the boys to come after them.

The boys were surprised to see the elevator door open. They were thoroughly confused. Duo asked why they didn't need to input a code. No one knew the answer. Wu-Fei heard all the commotion and met up with them. They entered the elevator. At the bottom, they saw the girls run off. Duo took off after them and his face met another elevator door, which had just closed. But soon after, they found it return and open for them. They followed and walked the same route they did before to the arena. The guys saw Lena standing in the middle as if she were waiting for something.

Ara ran back to the mansion. She figured the guys had followed her cousin and looked at a clock on the wall. She was late and had to get down there in time. She used the elevator and ran to where she was supposed to be, taking a few different hallways and doors.

The boys all stared at Lena. She then started to walk away from them to another door.

"Is this a trap?" asked Trowa.

"It seems like it," Duo put in. Lena stopped in front of the doors and turned to look at them. She waved them over. Heero went first and then followed by his friends. They were halfway across the arena when she entered the doors. The boys all stopped and the arena lit up. Heero looked to where Lena had disappeared and saw a large window 50' feet above the doors. He saw not only Lena and Dorothy, but also Milliardo, Noin, Pagan, and Prof. S. Milliardo held a microphone and began to talk.

"I'm glad that my sister was able to make you guys follow her down here," he said.

"Is this some kind of sick joke?" Duo asked. Milliardo laughed.

"No, this is a test," he replied. To the left of the boys, a huge garage-like door opened revealing a gundam. The boys were shocked. "This is Gundam Phoenix. I need to see how you fight with your gundams." To their right, their new gundams, the customs, stood waiting to be operated. Duo got excited. He ran to his gundam and got in the cockpit.

"Hey old buddy," he sighed, "Long time no see." He booted his gundam up. The others were a bit hesitant, but also accepted their gundams. With all gundams ignited, the pilots made them step forward. The Phoenix gundam, eyes glowed a bright red and moved forward.

"Quatre, you will fight Pilot 01X first," came Lena's voice. Quatre stared at the gundam. He then advanced towards it with his twin scythes. Pilot 01X pulled out its beam sword. They fought for a bit. Quatre studied the pilot's movements and found them to be quite advanced. Quatre couldn't keep up with the pilot. 01X used its double beam cannon and shot Sandrock into the wall. Wu-Fei was next. He tried to beat down his opponent as hard as he could. He was able to land a few hits on the gundam, but nothing harmful. Wu-Fei was getting frustrated and found his self thrown opposite of Quatre. With Trowa, he used all his ammunition and caused some damage. He then brought out his own beam sword and fought. A few minutes later, Pilot 01X slashed off Heavyarms' arms, knock it to the ground, and pushed aside. Duo was next and failed as well taking many beatings from the beam cannon.

Heero was last. He pulled out his beam sword. He stood there hoping that the pilot will attack first. They did. This fight lasted for a long time. Heero thought he should use the Zero system. He entered a code hoping the Zero system was installed. It was. When the system came into effect, Heero began to abuse the other gundam. 01X was caught off guard and was soon beaten to the ground. Wing Zero backed away and waited for something to happen. The others had already emerged from their gundams. Pilot 01X came out as well. The pilot was dressed in a black suit and wore a helmet with a tinted visor. The pilot stood. Heero came out and stared. All the guys could see from the build of the person that it was a female.

"A woman!" Wu-Fei exclaimed. Lena and Dorothy smirked.

"I would like all of you to meet Gundam Pilot 01X," Milliardo announced, "Let's see how you boys spar with her." All the guys looked at the pilot in front of them. Duo, on the other hand, was eyeing her up and down. He smiled and cracked his knuckles.

"I'll go first," Duo announced, "And I will go easy on you because you're a girl." He then walked a little ways toward the pilot and stopped a few metres away from her. "Ladies first," he said as he bowed courteously. _'Big mistake,' _thought the pilot. Before Duo could react, 01X ran into him with her knee ambushing his gut. Duo was so shocked that he couldn't move and was given a couple of punches and kicks. 01X let him fall to the ground, gasping for air and holding his stomach.

Thinking he could surprise her, Wu-Fei put her into a headlock and pinned her down.

"Women are weak," he stated. But the arrogant Chinese pilot soon found himself flipped forward as 01X held a steady grip on his arm. She then kept her hold on Wu-Fei and threw him against the wall. When Wu-Fei stood on his feet, he glared at 01X and jump-kicked her in the face, causing her to fall backwards. As Wu-Fei approached the pilot, she swung her leg at his to make him fall, quickly stood up, and tossed him on top of Duo. 01x turned around and faced the other guys. No one moved for a few minutes.

"Either Quatre or Trowa are up next," came Noin's voice. Quatre was quite hesitant and backed away. Trowa stepped up and waited for 01X to make the first move. She got the hint and the two began. Trowa gave 01X a better challenge. Although, Trowa was getting frustrated at the fact that the female pilot was wearing a helmet. Trowa had to figure out a way to get it off so that he would be at a greater advantage. The opportunity came when he kicked upward at her chin and sent the headgear in the air and landing right beside 01X. All the guys looked at the hidden features of their opponent.

Ara wasn't prepared for Trowa's kick. When the helmet was discarded, her hair now hung loose to her waist. All of the GW pilots stared at her in shock, especially Duo. He had recognised her as the "bartender" at the club. Taking the upper hand of the situation, Ara continued her attacks on Trowa. Caught off guard, Trowa found his self thrown 150' across the arena landing hard. Trowa grunted in pain and couldn't get up. Ara turned to the last two pilots. Quatre was still attempting to back away. But Zechs' voice told him to start.

Feeling impatient, Ara ran toward Quatre and started giving him punches and kicks. All Quatre did was block most of her moves.

"Is this all you can do?" Ara asked as she continued to fight him.

"I find it disrespectful to hit a lady," Quatre replied, "I'm sorry." Ara nodded. This was obviously not going anywhere and she was really looking forward to fighting the legendary Perfect Soldier. Ara faked a kick and grabbed one of Quatre's legs. Holding him in a tight grip, she threw him in the direction where Trowa was.

Ara turned around and faced Heero. To be honest with herself, no matter how much Milliardo told her she was better than the Perfect Soldier, she still doubted her abilities and felt slightly intimidated by Heero. Everything she read in the past and was told by her cousins about Heero had fascinated her. She didn't have the guts to set her own bones back in place or attempt suicide like he did. In a way, Ara admired the Wing pilot.

Heero just stared at her. _'Pilot 01X', _repeated itself over and over in his head. He didn't know exactly what this was all about. But he did remember a long time ago when he stumbled upon a file of Dr. J's when he was training with him. But the file was a half burned piece of paper. Dr. J was probably trying to get rid of it. All Heero could make out of what was left over of the paper was something about an experiment that included genetics and another gundam. To hell if he knew what that meant.

The two stood there challenging each other without saying anything. Ara figured that Heero was going to wait for her to strike first. She would give him that. Ara ran toward him. Before meeting him head on, she sharply leaped to his left and sent a kick to the side of his face. The maneuver seemed like a good idea. But Heero was somewhat prepared for whatever Ara was going to throw at him. He may have blocked her kick, but didn't keep all his balance since the force was quite strong, even for him. Heero stepped away and gave a punch. Ara grabbed his fist and spun him around to place him in a chest lock. Before anything else, Heero held a rough grip on her forearms and flipped her over. Ara flew a little ways and landed on her feet. Heero's eyes slightly widened. This opponent was definitely serving as a challenge. This time, both ran towards each other and began their attempts of abusing each other.

Ara was actually finding this quite fun. She had never experienced a fight like this. No one came in comparison to the Perfect Soldier. At certain points, both seemed to be equal. As the fight dragged on, everyone wondered as to how much longer the two would continue. Heero was obviously showing signs of exhaustion. Ara was slightly tiring out. Heero figured that he had better bring her down soon or she would be the one to come out on top. And he'd be damned to be defeated by a girl. With one final attempt, Heero faked a punch. As Ara dodged it, Heero ducked and grabbed her right leg and arm, then swung her into a nearby wall. Ara's from smacked into it, hard. As she recovered from the attack and turned around, she found Heero's fist in her abdomen. This caused Ara to lurch forward. Heero then elbowed her into the ground. The force was just as intense as hitting the wall. Ara may have experienced pain before, but this was new and harsher than the past. The shock left her on the ground barely able to move.

By now, everyone had surrounded them. Prof. S, Lena, and Dorothy were kneeling on both sides of Ara and waited for her to find the strength to heave herself up.

"Holy shit," Duo sighed, "Did that take forever for you to take her down or what?" If Heero had anymore energy, he would have glared at the braided idiot.

"Is she going to be alright?" Quatre asked.

"No doubt about it," Dorothy assured. Ara finally made an effort to move. At first she raised herself on all fours, and then stood. Turning around, she faced Heero. She then extended her hand and smiled.

"For the first time, someone worthy has defeated me." Heero glanced at her hand. He extended his own and the two participants shook in respect. "I congratulate you Heero Yuy. I should introduce myself." Heero gave a small smile, and then spoke.

"Ara Peacecraft."


End file.
